Tech startups keep turning to this tiny firm to help take them public

Square, the payments startup, filed to go public with many of the
usual marquee names on Wall Street listed as
its underwriters.

Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, and JPMorgan are all on the deal.

But right alongside them in the initial public offering filing is
a tiny San Francisco-based firm called Loyal3 Securities.

Loyal3 says its mission "is to make it easy and
affordable for people to own the brands they love."

Brands you love

It typically helps companies sell shares directly to
customers during IPOs and fundraisers. The company did not return
calls seeking comment in time for publication late Wednesday.

While the big banks are selling huge chunks of stock to hedge and
mutual funds, Loyal3 is selling a handful of shares at a time.

It helped raise $58 million for GoPro in four days, according to
its website, and $14.5 million for Virgin America in two days.

It has also worked on the IPOs of AMC Entertainment,
selling shares to members of the theater chain's loyalty program,
and GoDaddy, according to the company's website. It has also worked on
deals for HubSpot and Globant.

In Square's case, it is likely that Loyal3 will help the
merchant-services company's users buy into the IPO.

The firm, of course, will play a minor role in comparison to the
Wall Street giants working on the deal.

Goldman Sachs, which has deep connections to Square, is
leading the IPO.

Square's chief financial officer, Sarah Friar, is an ex-Goldman
Sachs banker, while former Goldman Sachs CFO David Viniar sits on
Square's board. The bank also led the IPO of Twitter, of which
Square CEO Jack Dorsey is also chief executive.

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